Take Over like Azim Barodawala
06/05/17 • 56 min
On this episode of Startup Funding hosted by Dr. Roshawnna Novellus we have Azim Barodawala who is the CEO of Atlanta-based Volantio Inc, a technology based focused on helping industries with highly volatile pricing and availability. This technology particularly applies to the travel industry and increases conversion rates while reducing costs. He is also a graduate of Duke University and completed his MBA in the Walton School along with a Masters in International Affairs from the University of Pennsylvania.
Azim, who has a strong passion for travel, innovation, technology, and strategy, has been able to utilize his significant international experience to solve the problem of last minute airline ticket sales. He talks about his experiences and why he decided to become an entrepreneur in a startup company. Azim explains better what Volantio Inc, actually does and how they are able to solve a major problem in ticket sales.
“Are you really passionate about what you are doing?” According to Azim, passion is a huge part of a successful startup, sharing how his passion for traveling was a huge factor in changing the way Volantio Inc operated in the past. Volantio Inc was already setup before Azim came into the picture and he tells us how he was able to properly integrate and overcome that challenge.
According to Azim, “financial concerns are the ones that can hold some people back” stating that monetary gains or glory shouldn’t be the main focus for startups, instead they should aim to solve a problem, in his case, Azim is trying to change and fundamentally impact how airlines are able to sell their tickets.
We get to hear Azim’s best and worst parts of raising capital including the highlights of the fundraising process for his business. We get to learn network building tips like writing a thank you card to potential investors and leveraging personal connections which will make funding much easier.
Speaking on the best advice he has received, Azim recommends a lecture he once heard on: 10 pieces of advice for a mega-successful career and a fulfilling life. These tips include focusing on objectives and starting your day early for higher effectiveness. The episode ends with Azim giving some words of wisdom to startup founders who want to raise money for their business.
Roshawnna and Azim discuss:
[04:09] Azim talks about himself and why he decided to become an entrepreneur.
[05:25] We get to hear more about the company and what has Azim fired up.
[12:44] Azim talks about how he was able to come into the business.
[16:50] Azim talks about his passion and how it was able to help him in the business.
[20:25] “Tell us about the best and worst parts of raising capital.”
[26:16] We learn what may have held him back from investing in the business.
[34:52] Azim shares a personal habit that contributes to his success.
[50:23] Azim shares words of wisdom for founders who want to raise capital.
On this episode of Startup Funding hosted by Dr. Roshawnna Novellus we have Azim Barodawala who is the CEO of Atlanta-based Volantio Inc, a technology based focused on helping industries with highly volatile pricing and availability. This technology particularly applies to the travel industry and increases conversion rates while reducing costs. He is also a graduate of Duke University and completed his MBA in the Walton School along with a Masters in International Affairs from the University of Pennsylvania.
Azim, who has a strong passion for travel, innovation, technology, and strategy, has been able to utilize his significant international experience to solve the problem of last minute airline ticket sales. He talks about his experiences and why he decided to become an entrepreneur in a startup company. Azim explains better what Volantio Inc, actually does and how they are able to solve a major problem in ticket sales.
“Are you really passionate about what you are doing?” According to Azim, passion is a huge part of a successful startup, sharing how his passion for traveling was a huge factor in changing the way Volantio Inc operated in the past. Volantio Inc was already setup before Azim came into the picture and he tells us how he was able to properly integrate and overcome that challenge.
According to Azim, “financial concerns are the ones that can hold some people back” stating that monetary gains or glory shouldn’t be the main focus for startups, instead they should aim to solve a problem, in his case, Azim is trying to change and fundamentally impact how airlines are able to sell their tickets.
We get to hear Azim’s best and worst parts of raising capital including the highlights of the fundraising process for his business. We get to learn network building tips like writing a thank you card to potential investors and leveraging personal connections which will make funding much easier.
Speaking on the best advice he has received, Azim recommends a lecture he once heard on: 10 pieces of advice for a mega-successful career and a fulfilling life. These tips include focusing on objectives and starting your day early for higher effectiveness. The episode ends with Azim giving some words of wisdom to startup founders who want to raise money for their business.
Roshawnna and Azim discuss:
[04:09] Azim talks about himself and why he decided to become an entrepreneur.
[05:25] We get to hear more about the company and what has Azim fired up.
[12:44] Azim talks about how he was able to come into the business.
[16:50] Azim talks about his passion and how it was able to help him in the business.
[20:25] “Tell us about the best and worst parts of raising capital.”
[26:16] We learn what may have held him back from investing in the business.
[34:52] Azim shares a personal habit that contributes to his success.
[50:23] Azim shares words of wisdom for founders who want to raise capital.
Previous Episode
Alternative Startup Financing with Jessica Norwood
Today on Startup Funding hosted by Dr. Roshawnna Novellus we have Jessica Norwood who is a fellow of Nathan Cummings Foundation and the founder of The Runway Project which uses entrepreneurship as a way to bridge the wealth gap for black-owned businesses. They do this by providing the early pre-seed capital and business support a.k.a friend and family money.
Jessica who is based in Mobile, Alabama and grew up between politics and entrepreneurship, believes that the entrepreneurial spirit has always been a part of her. As a result of a childhood surrounded by politics, she saw several opportunities where black entrepreneurship could be strengthened, more than what was already being done. Having done some work with some major foundations on food investment in Alabama, Jessica saw how she could get more direct investments to support the entire eco-system surrounding black farmers from the production side to the consumption side.
The problem Jessica saw was that investors cared more about later stage, growth type of capital where assets may be used for collateral but many startups are undercapitalized from the very beginning. Also, friends and family money which represents a $60 billion industry was not readily available for African Americans because of the wealth gap.
If you’ve ever wanted to know about trends in the food and agriculture industry, listen to Jessica talk about innovations in the industry including business to business operations and small scale in-house farming. Jessica isn’t only interested in the agriculture sector though, in her words “what I’m most passionate about is the entire eco-system surrounding how we deliver friends and family money to entrepreneurs of color in particular.” She also outlines the innovations and movements that are going on to make her idea a reality.
Jessica also gives advice to people who aren’t accredited investors but wish to support startup companies ate the seed stage. When asked how we can open people's mind to the cultural realities behind black startup founders towards seeing more social enterprises evolve, Jessica states that with a greater inclusion of people who come from those communities to be a part of creating the solution we can effect a culture change by using diversity as a strategy to understanding where good business opportunities are.
Don’t miss out on Jessica’s advice to startup founders so that they can be as attractive to investors as possible. Her advice includes greater inclusion and visibility and she also shares examples of how this can be done. That’s not all, we get to learn a personal habit of Jessica’s that contributes to her success in this deeply insightful episode.
Roshawnna and Jessica discuss:
[02:50] Jessica talks more about herself and her she came up with the idea for Runway Project.
[06:01] We get to learn more about trends in agriculture and urban farming.
[09:40] We learn what other sectors Jessica is interested in asides agriculture.
[19:10] Jessica shares a story of an entrepreneur that helped her push forward to create her approach.
[25:40] They talk about changing the cultural perception surrounding startup founders.
[32:42] Jessica shares recommendations for entrepreneurs who can’t access funding easily.
[41:40] Jessica answers an interesting question from Dr. Roshawnna
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